Overt/expressed vs. covert discrimination
Overt and covert discrimination are two distinct forms of bias that manifest in society. Overt discrimination is characterized by visible and explicit actions that deny individuals opportunities based on attributes such as race, gender, or religion. Historical examples include the Jim Crow laws in the United States, which allowed for institutionalized racism and discrimination against African Americans. Such blatant forms of discrimination have become less socially acceptable after the Civil Rights Movement and subsequent legislation, though they still exist today through harassment and exclusionary practices.
In contrast, covert discrimination operates more subtly and is often disguised as neutral or fair practices. This form can include tactics like sabotage and tokenism, where actions appear non-discriminatory but are intended to undermine or limit opportunities for marginalized groups. Covert discrimination can also be reflected in policies that, while seemingly justified, disproportionately affect minority applicants, such as stricter job requirements or biased banking practices. Efforts to combat both types of discrimination have led to significant legal advancements, yet covert discrimination remains particularly challenging to identify and address, often leaving victims unaware of the bias they face. Understanding these distinctions is crucial for recognizing and combating ongoing inequalities in various societal contexts.
On this Page
Overt/expressed vs. covert discrimination
Overt discrimination is discrimination that is visible and open. During the Jim Crow era in the United States, African Americans were publicly denied opportunities expressly on the basis of race. For example, they were denied membership in labor unions and equal access to public facilities, schools, and housing because they were Black. Discrimination during this time was legal and was viewed as justifiable.
Attitudes toward overt discrimination have changed dramatically since the Jim Crow era. In 1964, Congress passed the Civil Rights Act, which banned discrimination on the basis of race, religion, national origin, color, or gender in publicly owned facilities and by any programs that received federal aid. Subsequent legislation has banned discrimination in areas such as housing.
Because overt discrimination is visible, it is usually easy to document and remedy, and it has become much less likely to occur than it was at the beginning of the twentieth century. However, overt discrimination is still practiced by many individuals and groups. It is expressed through harassing remarks and through racial and ethnic violence. It is also practiced by various private social clubs. For example, during the 1990s, prominent multiracial golfer Tiger Woods was forbidden to play at several golf courses in the United States because of his race.
Covert discrimination differs from overt discrimination in that it is often concealed. It refers to actions that may appear to be nondiscriminatory but are discriminatory in intent and nature. Sabotage, the deliberate but covert undermining of an individual’s ability to do his or her job simply on the basis of prejudice, is one form of covert discrimination. Tokenism, the symbolic admission or hiring of an individual of color to mask otherwise discriminatory practices, is another.
Covert discrimination is often rationalized as being fair or necessary, when it actually denies equal opportunity. Poll taxes and literacy tests are examples of covert discrimination. In the late 1800s and early 1900s, individuals in some areas were not allowed to vote unless they passed a literacy test and/or paid a poll tax. Although the policies may have appeared to be rational, or at least not blatantly discriminatory, they were discriminatory in intent and in their results. The policies were intended to exclude African Americans from participating in the political process, and they were successful because many African Americans could not afford to pay the tax and many were not able to read. Within years of implementing these policies, the number of Black people registered to vote fell drastically.
Poll taxes and literacy tests were banned in 1965 when the U.S. Congress passed the Voting Rights Act. Although legislation such as this has helped stop incidents of covert discrimination, it has not eliminated it. For example, some companies and institutions have stringent job requirements, such as a minimal level of educational attainment or previous job experience. Some require applicants to pass tests to ascertain whether or not they are capable of performing the job. Although these practices appear to be nondiscriminatory, and they may in some cases be completely justified, they become discriminatory when the standards are set higher than deemed necessary for “business necessity” in order to prevent minority applicants from obtaining the job. Although steps have been taken to alleviate practices such as these, it is often difficult to prove that covert discrimination has occurred, and individuals are often not aware that they are victims.
Covert racism also shows up in policy implementation and practices. Banking practices, for example, have been scrutinized for the racial profiling they implement in loan policies, which often result in Black and minority applicants receiving less desirable rates than their White counterparts. Wells Fargo has faced several lawsuits in recent years for racists practices. Other examples of covert racism can include racial profiling, which is often used in the controversial “stop and frisk” practices of law enforcement. Researchers have found that Black people are frisked at a much higher rate than their White counterparts, despite being a much smaller percentage of the population.
Bibliography
Coates, Rodney D., ed. Covert Racism: Theories, Institutions, and Experiences. Leiden: Brill, 2011. Print.
Healey, Joseph F., and Eileen O'Brien. Race, Ethnicity, Gender, and Class: The Sociology of Group Conflict and Change. 7th ed. Thousand Oaks: Sage, 2015.
Lipsitz, George. The Possessive Investment in Whiteness: How White People Profit from Identity Politics. Rev. and expanded ed. Philadelphia: Temple UP, 2006.
Nieto, Alberto, and Lynne Buie. “Examine Racial Disparities in Police Stops.” Esri, 2024, learn.arcgis.com/en/projects/examine-racial-disparities-in-police-stops/#:~:text=The%20frisk%20rate%20for%20Black,White%20people%20to%20be%20frisked. Accessed 28 Nov. 2024.
Strohl, Jared. "The Transformation of Exclusion from an Overt to a Covert Process." Race, Space, and Exclusion: Segregation and Beyond in Metropolitan America. Ed. Robert M. Adelman and Christopher Mele. New York: Routledge, 2015. 155–65.
Sue, Derald Wing. Microaggressions in Everyday Life: Race, Gender, and Sexual Orientation. Hoboken: Wiley, 2010.
Williams, Ashley. “Modern-Day Racism in the Workplace: Symbolic Diversity or Real Change?” From Science to Practice: Organizational Psychology, vol., no. 2, 6-10, 2015, www.vanguard.edu/uploaded/Academics/Graduate/Organizational‗Psychology/Modern-Day-racism-in-the-workplace-Symbolic-diversity-or-real-change.pdf. Accessed 28 Nov. 2024.